Big Brother, Little Sister
by SunFrost1034
Summary: A series of chapters detailing Sierra's early life with her outstanding big brother, Liberia -contains OC's- Also, rating may go up later
1. How Liberia Met Sierra

"Damn Morocco…" I muttered. "Why does he always have to pick on me?"

"_Hahahaha! Take that, weakling. You can't even fight back," taunted Morocco, holding a rather large rock in his hand. I narrowed my eyes. "You're just a coward!" I yelled back at him, giving my most furious look._

_He actually had the nerve to appear shocked and take a few steps backward. But I didn't care anymore. "I'm done with being your little plaything, alright? You've beaten me up for far too long, and it ends now."_

I smiled in satisfaction. "Yes, he probably learned his lesson after I chased him around the village several times. There's no one faster than I, and he knows it too." I continued walking along the dirt road, lost in my thoughts, until I felt a presence staring at me.

Turning, I saw a little girl, about three years old, sitting with legs crossed, in an abandoned cart. She had the biggest eyes I'd ever seen, and there was an air around her that seemed to suggest that this was not a human child.

"Hello," I said, calmly. She nodded at me. "Who are you?" the little girl asked. _Isn't that the question of the year, _I thought. But I replied, "You can just call me Liberia for now." She nodded at me again.

"What about you? What's your name?" I inquired, making sure that my face was clear of any emotion. "My name is Sierra Leone," was the response. _Now where have I heard that name before? _I wondered, and then it came to me.

I smiled at the new country. "Well then, Miss Sierra, it's a pleasure to be of your acquaintance. And also a great honor. I mean, it is not every day that one stumbles upon a newborn nation, is it?"

"No, I believe not, sir," Sierra said. I chuckled a little bit at her habit of formality. "There is no need to be polite all the time, little one. It is okay to have some fun once in a while." She seemed to be considering this, before she gave me a curt nod.

I turned and faced the open road again. "I must be going now, but perhaps I shall see you again one day," I told her, and began walking. But I had only made it a few feet before I felt her watching me still.

"Have you nowhere to go, little one?" I asked her. There was only a shake of the head accompanied by a fleeting expression of sadness. A feeling of pity overcame me. "Well then…you can just stay with me for a while, I suppose."

A wide smile came, and she gazed up at me. I could see every emotion in her eyes, but the one that seemed to stand out the most was relief. And slowly, she took my outstretched hand. "Don't you worry, Sierra, you will be safe with me."


	2. Big Brother

I stood at the fireplace, watching as the crackling flames roared higher, slowly starting to heat up the pan. "It always takes so long to get warm after hours of the night cooling it down," I said to myself.

Creaking floorboards alerted me to the fact that Sierra had now woken up. I faced her with a big smile. "Good morning, little one, did you sleep well?" I asked her. "Oh yes, it was a delightful sleep. Thank you, sir," she replied.

"That's very good to know, then." I turned my attention back to the pan. "Breakfast will be ready shortly, I hope you enjoy it. But there is no doubt that you will, for I am the best cook in this entire town."

Sierra looked a bit confused, like she wasn't sure if that information would be useful or not. "Is that not getting too much pride in yourself, sir?" she asked. I laughed at her straightforwardness. "I believe it is, little one."

Taking her place at the table, she thoroughly enjoyed the okra I had laid out for a midnight treat yesterday but had forgotten all about it. "Careful," I warned her jokingly, "if you eat that then you are going to spoil your breakfast appetite."

She laughed a good and long laugh that was infectious. "It looks like the food is now ready," I managed to say in between my gasps. "It is very hot, so wait until it has cooled off a little bit, alright?" She nodded.

-line break—

"And that is why they call it the River of Healing," I said. A slight snore over from my right told me that Sierra had fallen asleep. "She is very cute when she's tired…" I murmured. Putting the book aside, I scooped her up in my arms and carried into the small back room.

I gently laid her across the bed and pulled a thin blanket over her, before leaning down to kiss her forehead. "Sleep well with good dreams, little one," I whispered to her. I stood back up and headed to the doorway when a small voice caught my attention once again.

"Goodnight, big brother."

My eyes widened considerably as I shut the door and leaned against it. "She called me big brother…" I said, letting it soak in. Then I smiled. "I promise, I'll be the best big brother you'll know, just you wait."


	3. Chapter 3

I thanked the young woman with whom I had just finished trading supplies, for her time. I was about to head out when an all-too familiar voice interrupted my peaceful state of mind. "Hey, weakling, who's this little loser?"

Behind us was my greatest enemy, Morocco. He had a wide smirk on his face as he carelessly tossed a stone around. "She's hardly little anymore," I said. Sierra raised a fist threateningly. "That's right, I'm not. So I can kick you in your face right now."

To our surprise, he laughed. "This loser's got a fighting spirit! I like her. Be careful, Lib, I just might claim her as a Moroccan territory before you know what happened." With that statement, he walked off, no doubt with a smug expression on his face.

**-**line break—

_"Waaaaaaa!" I cried out, as I ran through the tall grass. "That stupid boy pelting you with stones again?" someone asked me. I looked up to see a rather thin man, at least several years older than Morocco, with a bow hanging on his back. _

_ "Yes…but how do you know about him? You must be new here, right?" I asked. He shook his head, smiling a little bit. "I've been hanging around this area for the past year, boy. I know my way. I'm Guinea."_

_ I offered him my hand. "Nice to meet you, sir," I said. "You as well…also, I don't believe I know your name yet." _

_ "Liberia!" I declared happily, throwing my arms up into the air. _

My eyes shot open with a heavy intake of air. I sat up, staring in a daze down at the bed sheet. "Why did I just dream of that?"

-line break—

"Big brother, big brother!" Sierra called from somewhere inside the house. I sighed and stood up, reluctantly abandoning my project. "What is it?" I responded. A moment passed before she called again.

"Big brother…I-I've lost Battalion…"

I groaned. "You've lost the doll again? Honestly, Sierra, I do not have enough time in the day to keep making new toys for you! This is the sixth time you've lost him, and I absolutely refuse to sow another one!"

"B-b-but i-if I don't find him, I'll have n-nightmares…he keeps the bad ghosts away that make me think about scary stuff…" she whimpered. I gave a sigh of defeat. "Alright, fine. I'll sow you a new one, but this is the last time, understand?"

-line break—

**April 28****th****, 1960**

I was rudely awoken by a phone call. I was almost tempted to let it ring, but after the third or fourth ring I surrendered in annoyance and answered it. "Whoever you are, please call me back later."

"What? No, it's me!" someone shouted on the other end, causing me to wince. "Sierra? Why in the world are you calling at such an early hour, anyway?" There was a presence of disappointment in the air just then.

"You mean you haven't heard the news?" she finally said. "No…I've been a little busy lately, I'm afraid."

"Well, turn on the radio! Hurry, turn it on!" She spoke urgently, as if there was a national emergency happening right at this moment. So I dragged it into my room and fiddled with the dial until a frequency was picked up.

I caught some stuff about the British, independent countries, celebrations and the name "Sierra Leone." After I got over my shock and surprise, I felt very joyful at the news and immediately called my little sister back.

"So did you hear it?" was the first thing she asked. "Yes, I have," I told her. "And I'm very happy for you too." I could almost hear her grin on my side of the call, and I could hear distant cheering before she hung up.

I fell back on my bed, staring at the ceiling. "She's finally free…my little one is growing up. And then, someday…she'll have grown up to the point where she won't need to live with me anymore…why I am thinking negative stuff? Independence has been declared, she's happy, and so am I."


	4. Two in Paris

_Paris is the most beautiful city I've ever seen, _I thought. Coming here had been my big brother's idea, in order to get me to know the world better. At first, I had been unwilling to go, but once I saw Paris, my mind was instantly changed.

"I wonder if France will be found here. This is the most popular French city, I believe…" I said to myself. Deep in thought, I wandered aimlessly down the sidewalk until a forceful voice pulled me out of my daydream.

"Hey, little girl, where do you think you're going?" I turned around to see a bunch of kids, glaring down at me. The tallest one had a gun pointed at my face. Most people would have become afraid after that, but I gathered my courage and laughed.

The leader looked surprised, but quickly regained his smug expression. "Who are you to laugh at us, idiot? You're just gallivanting all over our town without paying us first." I crossed my arms. "For your information, you are the idiot here. This is a city-owned sidewalk, and I do not need to pay anyone to use it."

A fist was raised and shots rang out in the middle of the crowd.

-line break—

I awoke in someone's arms, with a warm, wet substance flowing down the side of my head. "Took a pretty nasty hit there," the stranger said. "Are you alright?" I opened my mouth to answer, but for some reason, no words could or would come out.

The stranger set me down on something. "I'm Turkey, who are you?" he asked. I struggled to speak. "S-Sierra Leone…" I whispered.

"I see…so, what were you doing in an alleyway with blood dripping down your face?"

Sitting up, I found myself to be on a stone bench. "I…I was just on my way…and t-then a couple of teens attacked me. They wanted my money…" I told him, and he shook his head. "You were lucky it was just a head wound. If they'd gotten you in the heart, we'd all be in serious trouble right now."

I nodded. "So…you're Turkey, huh? I've heard of you, but I don't know that much about you, I'm afraid." He waved it off immediately. "That's okay; I know I'm not the most popular country around these parts."

We sat there for a while until I felt myself getting drowsy again. Turkey noticed this and offered to take me home. "Oh no, you've done too much already," I said, getting to my feet. "I'd hate to burden you more."

"Well, if you insist…perhaps I shall see you around? The next world conference is in four days, I'd like it if you showed up. Maybe you could pound some common sense into America and his crazy thinking."

I laughed. "We shall see."


	5. The Middle of A War

The smell of burning wood filled the air, drifting out through a window and up towards the brightly shining sun. The sound of an axe came from nearby, as splinters of wood soared by the wind and slowly falling to the ground.

I watched Liberia work, his eyes narrowed and his hands wrapped firmly around the handle of the axe, as another piece of wood flew through the air and landed at my feet. "Big brother," I said.

He stood and faced me with a blank expression, but I could tell by looking into his eyes that he was feeling more than a bit irritated at me for having interrupted his morning work. "Yes, what it is?"

Knowing that the pain would not stay away long, I replied, "Well, I have been thinking lately that it was time for me to move out, permanently." His grip on the axe loosened, but it did not slip from his fingers. "I see…" he said at last, studying me intently.

"If you are serious, then please pack your things and leave immediately." Liberia said all of this with a solemn face, but I knew that as soon as I went inside the house, tears began to flow. However, he didn't have a chance to cry for long, because I had not very many things to pack.

I stood on the porch steps, observing him. He stood straight, yet he slumped down. He smiled, yet his eyes said everything about himself. I set my bag down. "Big brother…the reason I am leaving is not because I hate you. In fact, I love you more than words could say. But…I believe it is time for me to move on now, to find my own place in this world."

He nodded. "Plus…I'm afraid that with all the pain I have been experiencing lately, because of the civil war, will tear me apart, starting from the inside out. It's happened to every great nation at least once…and while I may not be great and strong…I'm still so afraid that my civil war will end up affecting you, somehow, in some way. So I think it is best for everyone if I go away."

There was silence, for what seemed like infinity. But he finally knelt down and looked right at me. "Is that what you believe, Sierra?" he asked me gently. "Y-yes…" I mumbled, staring at the ground.

He made me look up. "But that is not what's going to happen, alright?" he said, pulling me into a tight hug. "Now come on, I do think you have a trip to make." My big brother took my hand, smiling down at me.

I grabbed for my bag and slung it over my shoulder. "I'm sorry, brother. But…I really am sure that it is for the greater good, for all of us." Liberia squeezed my hand as tightly as possible. "I know, little one."

"I know."


End file.
